


It Comes Back When You’re Sleeping

by BelleRaev



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: And a mild panic, Angst, F/M, Nile and Booker both had traumatic Neck related deaths, Nothing really happens here except for dialogue, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Snippet, implied BDSM, out of context fic coda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:15:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27815182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BelleRaev/pseuds/BelleRaev
Summary: “This isn’t fun for either of us if you’re afraid Nile” Booker sounds as if he’s made up his mind and Nile has the sudden urge to hide the restraints behind her back in a game of keep away.
Relationships: Booker | Sebastien le Livre/Nile Freeman
Comments: 4
Kudos: 31





	It Comes Back When You’re Sleeping

**Author's Note:**

> So I’m filling this Dom!Booker prompt on the kink meme and this one specific scene will not allow me to move on unless I wrote it EXCEPT I really don’t want it in the story so I figured maybe if I posted it somewhere I can be free of it. 
> 
> This probably won’t make sense. The context is Dom!Booker, Sub!Nile.

Booker’s next brand of torture included giving her what she wanted and Nile hasn’t felt this anxious since she made the trudge up the small incline to his home. 

“They’re just wrist restraints” He says as he handed it to her to observe. They were not just wrist restraints. 

Her fingers skimmed over the wide band of the collar and she was surprised at how firm it was. Completely unyielding. “Is this real leather?” Nile asks because honestly she wasn’t sure what else to say. Her nerves were rearing their ugly heads and she needed to say something so that her face didn’t betray her. 

“Does that matter?” Booker says and there’s a knowing glint in his eyes when they meet hers. He could see that she was stalling and he was allowing her to do so. 

“I’m just curious as to how much you spend on these things” She’d always been quick at thinking on her feet but it’s pretty clear that Booker doesn’t believe her. 

“We can start with something simpler” He says reaching forward to take the restraints but Nile pulls it out of reach, “No” she says resolute, “I want this one” her grip is tight as she holds it close to her body. 

“This isn’t fun for either of us if you’re afraid Nile” Booker sounds as if he’s made up his mind and Nile has the sudden urge to hide the restraints behind her back in a game of keep away. 

“I’m not afraid” she rebuts, her tone more annoyed and defensive than she meant it to be. It made her feel like a child throwing a tantrum but it took so much to get here and the idea of not getting what she wanted was setting her on edge.

“I’m fine. I’m ready. Put it on me” her hands are tight around the long strap connecting the cuffs to the collar as she juts it towards Booker. 

He stares her down in silence for a full minute as she bristles and her stubbornness builds before he finally reaches for the strap. 

“Take off your shirt” Booker says tone ice cold as he takes the restraint in two hands and steps into her personal space. 

Nile’s heart is pounding, both out of nerves and the weighted look that he gave her. She pulls the shirt up and off in one fell swoop then she is standing naked and feeling skittish. 

Booker reaches up to bring his hand to her neck and her heart feels as if it is going to jump out of her chest. His fingers graze the sharp tendons at the sides and works around until his thumb is scraping into the hollow of her throat and Nile feels the fear that he spoke of. 

Low in her stomach the butterfly wings turned frenzied and her breathing suddenly required more effort. It’s hard to tell whether she’s imagining it or not but the skin at her throat feels particularly tender and a terrible memory of her first death flashes before her eyes. 

“We’ll start with something simpler” Booker says after a firm push of his thumb into the dip of her throat causes her to gasp. “We can work up to the collar.” He continues and slides his fingers along to the sides around her jugular, “Don’t ever force something that makes you uncomfortable” his eyes are softer now and Nile can’t help feeling embarrassed at her mini freak-out and how easily he picked it out. 

“This is what I want” she says and her voice isn’t as sure as before. “Not specifically” Booker says and grasps her chin with a firm hand, “I know this is asking a lot but you have to trust me” he drops her chin but not her gaze, “at least with this. I’m not going to hurt you and I’m not going to let you hurt yourself” 

The thing is that she does trust him in this. She’s seen how he treats his clients. It can’t be said to be gentle due to the nature of it but he’s careful, and he’s caring. And there’s kindness in the attention that he gives them. It’s what made her want to keep watching, aside from the general sexual aspect of it. He seemed like he liked what he was doing and it caught her attention because there weren’t many things that he seemed to genuinely like in the short time they got to learn about each other. 

She truly doesn’t know where her panic was coming from but it wasn’t from fear of him. 

“I know. I’m sorry.” Nile says and she means it. 

“It’s not your fault. Believe me, I understand.” Booker answers and his gaze fleets to her neck and back to hers.

Nile reaches out to rub the skin absentmindedly because of it and she’s reminded of what she knows of his first death. He was hung; Andy had told her, it made sense suddenly that he had been so attuned to her panic before she was. A panic that was going to apparently get in the way of something she really wanted. 

“Can we try again later?” Nile asks hopeful and drops her hand to her side. “When you’re ready” Booker says and his tone makes it evident that he’ll be the one to decide. She trusts him. She uses that trust to force back the urge to argue for her autonomy. He sees it on her face. 

“You’re really stubborn” Booker says but there’s a hint of amusement in his tone like he likes it, “If you stay here long enough we can work on fixing that” There’s a sudden heat in his eyes that captures her and reminds her of her nakedness in the room. She flushes from head to toe. 

“Do your worst” she says because _she is_ incredibly stubborn; or maybe masochistic. Only time will tell.


End file.
